Indie-pop band Sheppard will tour Tasmania for the first time. Singer Amy Sheppard said the band was blown away by the response to their latest album, Watching the Sky, which was released in June. “Writing this album was a bit of a slog. We weren’t sure how it was going to be received after [our song] Geronimo,” she said. “Obviously we felt a lot of pressure, so we definitely took our time and made it the best we could. We were just hoping for the best result. “After the album did go number one, we wanted to go as many towns as we could just to say thank you to everybody who did support us. “It’s not often that we get to do a full Australian tour, so we thought now would be the perfect opportunity.” Sheppard said the band was really excited to play in Tasmania for the first time. “We think it’ll be a really great opportunity for all of our fans to come out and see us for the first time in Tassie,” she said. Sheppard said the band would be touring for almost the rest of the year. “It’s exciting but it’s also extremely exhausting,” she said. “Obviously the best part of our job is being on stage but getting to that point is kind of gruelling. “We hope people show up to the show so that we can get some energy from the crowd and put on a great performance. “We’ll be playing all our new songs from Watching the Sky, plus, of course, some Sheppard classics that you might know from Bombs Away.” Singer George Sheppard said from the moment the album went number one, the band began planning the biggest party possible to say thank you to all their fans. “It’s taken us a little bit longer than we anticipated to get over to Tasmania, but I don’t think the party would be complete without saying thank you to Hobart and Launceston,” he said. Sheppard will play Club 54 in Launceston on October 12, and the Granada Tavern in Hobart on October 13. Meet-and-greets will be available after each show. Tickets are available through Oztix. For more information, visit www.wearesheppard.com. IN OTHER NEWS: